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ABOUT US "Why doesn't Cleveland have a comedy festival?" The question was asked by John Wellington to a group of fellow local comedians after a show at the Bassa Vita Lounge in Lakewood back in 2006. None of the comedians present had an answer but all in attendance immediately agreed it was something Cleveland needed and something that the comedy community in Cleveland deserved. Several pointed out that many other cities with lesser comedic resumes than Cleveland had their own festivals. So it was decided then and there to make a comedy festival a reality and a small group of local comedians took it upon themselves to make it happen. Our inagural festival in 2008 was a huge success. We exceeded our own expectations and had several sold-out shows, featured more than 40 comedians, and taped and aired a very funny television special with WVIZ ideastream. Most importantly, we enjoyed ourselves tremendously and brought more awareness to the comedic talent here in Cleveland. In fact, we joked that that the only negative thing about last year was that we realized we're going to have to do this again. And so we're back for our 2nd year in 2009 bigger and better than before. We've added shows, expanding from 3 days to 5 days. We've added more comedians from Northeast Ohio and even invited in special guest comics from other cities. Also new this year is the Ninja Comedy Death Match 3, a very unique 3-round comedy contest and a YouTube Comedy Video Show featuring the funniest viral videos from Cleveland producers. We've also added a very important fund raiser event and show in the Comedy Carnival. It's all true to our vision to create an event that is uniquely Cleveland, a celebration of comedy and local talent that continues the legacy of funny that includes Bob Hope, Ernie Anderson, Tim Conway Arsenio Hall, Steve Harvey, Drew Carey and many, many others. Cleveland has always been a funny place that seems to foster more than its fair share of hilarious people. Come join us and see for yourself. It's a packed 5 days of laughs and fun and sure to be great time. We hope that you'll join us November 4-8 and help us celebrate comedy and celebrate Cleveland. See the Shows and Events page for details on all the happenings and how to get tickets. Thanks! Joe Hannum, JD Sidley, John Wellington, |